Quite frankly, Marco Verratti moving to Barcelona has felt inevitable for some time now.
And it looks like the Italian could be on his way to Camp Nou this summer, if he plays his cards right.
Having played the waiting game, the Catalan club look poised to make a move for the Paris Saint-Germain playmaker in the next few weeks, but only if he refuses to train with the French side during pre-season.
According to Barcelona’s local newspaper Sport, the club are prepared to launch an offer of around £71million for Verratti if he goes AWOL from Parc des Princes.
Great tactics, lads.
For what it’s worth, the Ligue 1 side want to keep hold of their midfield dynamo and have said they’re simply not interested in selling him.
Which means Barcelona are set to play the long game by taking advantage of the 24-year-old’s fractious relationship with PSG manager Unai Emery.
Despite their stance, it’ll be very hard for PSG to keep hold of the player if he refuses to train.
The Parisian club expect Verratti to return from his holidays next week to begin training for the new season, but there’s supposedly every chance he could be a no-show.
However, refusing to train could potentially cost the Italian severe financial repercussions, which could see him forfeit any loyalty bonus written into his contract.